Thomas goes after Barrow in congressional debate

The Democratic primary challenger to U.S. Rep. John Barrow accused him of dragging his feet on reducing gas prices and supporting illegal wiretapping of Americans during a televised debate Tuesday.

State Sen. Regina Thomas of Savannah called herself the "true Democrat" in her race against Barrow, a two-term incumbent in the 12th Congressional District.

"The incumbent has always voted with Bush and the Republicans, and look at where we are," Thomas said in a dig at Barrow's support for President Bush's signature tax cuts and his votes against setting timetables for withdrawal from Iraq.

Barrow refrained from attacking in kind, but defended himself as a congressman willing to work with Republicans and Democrats alike.

"I genuinely believe that's what this country needs," said Barrow, of Savannah. "And I know that's what the vast majority of the folks I represent want us to do in Washington."

Much of the debate, broadcast live from Atlanta on Georgia Public Television, focused on rising gas prices.

Barrow said he supports streamlining the process for permitting new oil refineries and halting government oil purchases to be placed into U.S. strategic reserves. He also supported funding for alternative fuels such as ethanol.

Thomas said she favored repealing federal subsidies for oil companies and giving the money back to consumers hit hard by $4-a-gallon gas. She said Barrow has had plenty of time in office to have taken action.

"This gas crisis did not just come about," Thomas said. "Being in Congress for four years and still talking about what you're going do, it should have already been done."

Thomas also attacked Barrow for his recent vote favoring passage on an update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, intended to balance privacy rights while protecting the U.S. against attacks.

Thomas said the legislation gave telecommunications companies immunity from prosecution for illegal wiretapping of American citizens. Barrow denied that's what the act does.

"It gives the intelligence community the tools they need to follow up and track the bad guys while protecting the civil rights we're all about in the first place," he said.

Thomas called Barrow's answer "smoke and mirrors" and insisted the legislation "will still allow the government to violate the right to privacy of American citizens."

The 12th District covers portions of Savannah and Augusta as well as a large swath of rural eastern Georgia including Statesboro, Vidalia and Milledgeville.

The Democrats' debate was followed by the three Republican candidates seeking the GOP nomination in the July 15 primary. Again, gas prices dominated.

John Stone of Augusta, an aide to former Republican Reps. Charlie Norwood and Max Burns, supported immediate relief for consumers by suspending gas taxes. He said the government should pay for the tax break by repealing subsidies to oil companies.

"One problem we've had as a party is we've stood up too much for corporate interests and not enough for the average working guy who needs a break," Stone said.

Ray McKinney of Savannah, who abandoned a long shot presidential bid to run for Congress, agreed gas taxes should be suspended. But he said oil companies pay enough taxes already and don't deserve to lose their federal subsidies.

"The federal government is making more in profits than the oil companies are," McKinney said.

Former Savannah talk radio host Ben Crystal said the U.S. needs to expand offshore drilling - even off the Georgia coast. He called it a necessity of national security for America to wean itself from dependence on foreign oil.

"The assumption that the environment would someday be heavily endangered ... is dramatically overblown and in some cases patently false," Crystal said.